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Next Tuesday, October 29, the NBA championship 2013/2014 will start. What are the favorite teams for the title? As always, there were many trades during the off season and now we’ll starte seeing who made the right ones. Let’s see which teams might be the Conference semi-finalists.
Eastern Conference
Miami Heat
After having won the last two NBA titles, the Miami Heat are still the favorites. Of course, this brings pressure but at this point it’s very small compared to what they had to endure before winning two years ago. They have changed very little the team even though someone will have to replace Mike Miller as a shooting guard. On the other hand, if Greg Oden can still play, the Heat will be stronger in the paint.
Chicago Bulls
Finally Derrick Rose will return to play. The Chicago Bulls have played well last season without him, obviously expectations will be high for this season. This season is important for the future of the team also because next year the management will have to take decisions on some players with big contracts. If this is a distraction it will be a big problem but if it becomes a motivation the Bulls will be the first alternative to the Heat in the East.
Indiana Pacers
Last season they kept on improving and now for them comes a really hard time, meaning that they must at least confirm the Conference Finals reached last spring. There have been various changes to the roster and now the team will have to play with the right mindset. The Indiana Pacers have the potential to repeat last season’s result but with the pressure they’ll have to endure they might be disappointed.
Brooklyn Nets
A team that already was on the rise after moving to Brooklyn has added veterans such as Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Andrei Kirilenko and Jason Terry. That might not be enough, also because such a choice means trying to win this season or in the next. They have to work a lot to find the right chemistry and perhaps only next year they’ll find a few adjustments to make the leap they need to compete with the best teams.
Western Conference
Oklahoma City Thunder
The last season ended with a disappointment and it will take a few more weeks before Russell Westbrook can play again. However, the Oklahoma City Thunder still have the potential to be the winners of the Western Conference and try again to win the NBA title.
Denver Nuggets
They too have finished last season with a disappointment and await the return of a major player, in their case Danilo Gallinari. For them there was also a coach change: instead of Georke Karl there will be Brian Shaw, who will be head coach for the first time after several years as an assistant. Because of that, this season pretty much everything can happen to them: the potential is still to be Conference finalists but the Nuggets must be able to overcome the problems that have sunk them in previous seasons.
Houston Rockets
With the arrival of Dwight Howard, the Houston Rockets must make the quality leap they’ve been looking for in recent seasons. It certainly won’t be easy because in the coming months the players will have a lot of pressure on them. The potential is considerable, even for the Conference finals but the players have to find the right team chemistry and motivations, otherwise it will be a disappointing season.
Memphis Grizzlies
After last season’s Conference finals, the Memphis Grizzlies will face opponents reinforced and ready to fight. The new head coach Dave Joerger will have to prove he can handle the situation: he already was Lionel Hollins’s assistant so he already knows the team well but now the responsibility is his. In my opinion it will be hard to repeat last season’s result.
